Amazing, caring Jesus

Any of you remember this post? I do. :) I loved that cup. I used it every morning. The first thing I did when I got up in the morning was check to see if the dishwasher had been run and if my beautiful little cup would be resting, clean and shiny, ready to use. If it wasn't, then I took it out and hand washed it, then dried it, then filled it with coffee. I smiled every time I opened the cupboard and saw it. It made me very happy ... until I broke it. Yup, sadness among all sadnesses. I was bummed. I'd bought that cup (and three others almost exactly like it, just different colors) for my hope chest. But I loved it so much, the brown one was my favorite among the ones I'd bought, that I just had to use it right away. How could I put something so wonderful into a box to wait and wait and wait and wait and ... ? :) Yeah. So I faithfully loved it ... and broke it.

But having it break made me realize that I cared too much for my hope chest things. It was, after all, just a cup, a glass, 50cent cup, and it bothered me for days that I broke it. So I had to rethink some things. I prayed and asked God to help me keep my hope chest things in the right focus, which was not the "most important, dearly loved items" focus. I'd begun to put those possessions in a very high place in my life. Sound crazy? Maybe it was, but I long for and desire the day when I can unpack each and every piece with my new husband. Lovingly and caring-ly putting each one in the place I know I'll find it when I walk into my very own kitchen to make meals for my beloved husband.

After I broke it, I went to the Family Dollar store (where I'd originally bought it) to see if perhaps they would have just one left in the clearance isle. They didn't. So I asked the lady if maybe, just because they were out, they would be getting more in again. I smiled so nicely at her, hoping it would maybe help me out ... it didn't. She said that because it was in the clearance isle that they would never get them again ... ever (yes, she really, truly emphasized "ever" just like that). Needless to say I was quite disheartened.

So, as I said, I prayed and asked God to help me keep my life, my hope chest, my desires, my dreams, my God, my Jesus, all in the right and proper focus. And He did. What a wonderful Jesus! I still would miss having it and drinking out of it when I saw the pictures of it but I was content. God had answered my prayer and had helped me adjust my focus.

Yesterday I walked out to the Family Dollar store to pick up a shirt I'd been eyeing for a while. When I'd picked up the shirt I wanted I wandered through the store, just looking. I love to do that in our dollar store, we have such neat things! So in my wanderings I wandered over to the kitchen isle. Guess what I saw? Yes, the cup!! The cup that they would never ... ever get, never, ever again. It was there!!! Oh, how happy I was. I nearly shouted for joy (I did manage to contain myself, however :) ). I was so excited and happy that I was telling the cashier about how happy I was and how sad I'd been when I broke my first cup and how happy I was that they had it and ... He, obviously not understanding, simply said, very monotone-ishly, "Yes, they are nice cups." I was not, however, going to let it get me down. So I walked, (ever so carefully) back home, cups in bag. I bought two this time. :) One to stow away in my hope chest and one to use.

But as I walked I couldn't help being overcome with thankfulness, awe, shock, surprise. My God cared enough about the little dear-to-my-heart cup to allow the store to get a new order of the cups that they were never ... ever going to get again. I smiled all the way home. How many times do we think that God doesn't really care about that stuff? And how often are we totally shocked when we see that He does? I think that I, for one, should rethink my Jesus and never underestimate His love and care ... even if it's just about a little broken cup!